Game system

ABSTRACT

A game system includes: a balloon; an air supply source; an air supply pipe that connects the balloon with the air supply source; and a control device that executes a game, and when the game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit, performs control for producing a game effect of bursting the balloon having been inflated.

Japanese Patent Application No. 2017-115054, filed on Jun. 12, 2017, is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a game system.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-007050 discloses a game machine which produces an effect in which a balloon body inflates or contracts in response to a playing state.

While conventional game machines include those which produces an effect of inflating and contracting a balloon body, there is no conventional game machine which produces an effect of bursting an inflated balloon body.

SUMMARY

The invention can provide a game system capable of producing a nonconventional and new effect.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a game system including:

a balloon;

an air supply source;

an air supply pipe that connects the balloon with the air supply source; and

a control device that executes a game, and when the game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit, performs control for producing a game effect of bursting the balloon having been inflated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a configuration of a game system according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view schematically illustrating a configuration of a game system according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a detailed configuration of an air supply pipe.

FIG. 4 is a partially sectional side view illustrating a detailed configuration of an air supply pipe and a balloon bursting mechanism.

FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of a game system according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a flow of processes of a control device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a modification.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENT

(1) According to one embodiment of the invention, there is provided a game system including:

a balloon;

an air supply source;

an air supply pipe that connects the balloon with the air supply source; and

a control device that executes a game and, when the game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit, performs control for producing a game effect of bursting the balloon having been inflated.

According to the embodiment described above, there can be provided a game system which is capable of producing a nonconventional and new effect of bursting an inflated balloon when the game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit.

(2) The game system described above may further comprise a balloon bursting mechanism for bursting the balloon,

wherein the air supply pipe may branch into two systems including a first air supply pipe connected to the balloon, and a second air supply pipe open to the atmosphere, and

wherein the control device may performs control for supplying air from the air supply source to the balloon via the first air supply pipe until a predetermined period of time elapses, and when the predetermined period of time has elapsed, perform control for causing air from the air supply source to be discharged from the second air supply pipe, and for operating the balloon bursting mechanism to produce the game effect.

According to the game system described above, by inflating the balloon until a predetermined period of time elapses, and when the predetermined period of time has elapsed, by stopping the supply of air to the balloon through the first air supply pipe and discharging air through the second air supply pipe, a sensation as if the balloon continues to be inflated can be imparted to a player even after inflation of the balloon is stopped, due to the sound of air discharged from the second air supply pipe, and an effective effect can be produced while preventing the balloon from bursting at an unintended timing.

(3) In the game system described above, the control device may perform control for operating the balloon bursting mechanism according to an operation by a player when the game is cleared.

According to the game system described above, even when a game effect is not produced due to the game being cleared within a time limit, the player can experience a game effect of bursting a balloon.

(4) In the game system described above, a playing field of a player may be enclosed by four wall bodies, the balloon may be disposed on one of the four wall bodies, and a screen for displaying a game screen may be disposed on at least one of the three remaining wall bodies.

According to the game system described above, the game effect of bursting an inflated balloon can be enhanced.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described. Note that the embodiment described below do not unduly limit contents of the invention described in the claims. Note also that all of the elements described in connection with the following embodiments should not necessarily be taken as essential elements of the invention.

1. Configuration

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a configuration of a game system (an effect systems according to one embodiment of the invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof. A game system 1 includes a rubber balloon 10 which inflates when air is supplied thereto, projectors 20 (20 a and 20 b), a touch module 30, a camera 40, a speaker 50, a control box 60, an air supply pipe 70, a guide member 80, and a balloon bursting mechanism 90. Note that the touch module 30, the camera 40, the speaker 50, the control box 60, the air supply pipe 70, the guide member 80, and the balloon bursting mechanism 90 are not illustrated in FIG. 1.

A playing field PF in which a player P carries out a game is constituted by an approximately rectangular parallelepiped space enclosed by four wall bodies 2 (2 a, 2 b, 2 c, and 2 d), and the playing field. PF is opened upward. Screens 3 (3 a and 3 b) are respectively disposed on the wall bodies 2 a and 2 b, the balloon 10 is disposed on the wall body 2 c, and a door 4 (an entrance to the playing field PF) is provided on the wall body 2 d. The projector 20 a projects a game screen on the screen 3 a of the wall body 2 a, and the projector 20 b projects a game screen on the screen 3 b of the wall body 2 b. The touch module 30 is an infrared touch sensor for detecting a touch operation by the player P on the screens 3 a and 3 b (game screens) and is mounted above each of the screens 3 a and 3 b (the wall bodies 2 a and 2 b). The camera provided in the projectors 20 a and 20 b images the screens 3 a and 3 b, and based on a detected signal from the touch module 30 and a captured image of the camera provided in the projectors 20 a and 20 b, a touch position of the player P on the screens 3 a and 3 b can be detected. The camera 40 is a wide-angle video camera for imaging (and recording) the player P and the balloon 10 in the playing field. PF and is mounted in an upper part of the playing field PF.

The control box 60 is disposed outside of the playing field PF and stores a control device (a control PC), an air supply source (an air pump), a power source, and the like. The air supply pipe 70 (a first air supply pipe branched from the air supply pipe 70) connects the air supply source with the balloon 10 and feeds air from the air supply source into the balloon 10.

The guide member 80 is a member which is fitted into the wall body 2 c and which supports the balloon 10 in an inflated state. The balloon bursting mechanism 90 is a mechanism for braking (puncturing) the inflated balloon 10. In order to enhance an effect, the balloon bursting mechanism 90 is disposed at a position hardly visible from the playing field PF and is mounted inside the guide member 80 in a vicinity of an aperture (a blowhole) of the balloon 10.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a detailed configuration of the air supply pipe 70. The air supply pipe 70 connected to an air supply source 61 branches into two systems, namely, an air supply pipe 71 (the first air supply pipe) and an air supply pipe 72 (the second air supply pipe), the air supply pipe 71 is connected to the balloon 10 (an opening-side tip portion thereof is inserted into the aperture of the balloon 10), and the air supply pipe 72 is opened to the atmosphere (an opening thereof is exposed in the atmosphere). A solenoid valve 73 (a first solenoid valve) is provided in the air supply pipe 71 and a solenoid valve 74 (a second solenoid valve) is provided in the air supply pipe 72. When inflating the balloon 10, the control device performs control so as to place the solenoid valve 73 in an open state and the solenoid valve 74 in a closed state (so that air from the air supply source 61 is supplied to the balloon 10 via the air supply pipe 71) and, when stopping inflation of the balloon 10, the control device performs control so as to place the solenoid valve 73 in a closed state and the solenoid valve 74 in an open state (so that air from the air supply source 61 is discharged from the air supply pipe 72). When the solenoid valve 74 is placed in an open state, air is discharged from the opening of the air supply pipe 72 and an air discharge sound is generated. The opening (an atmospheric release opening) of the air supply pipe 72 may be provided outside the playing field PF or provided inside the playing field PF, and need only be provided at a position where the player P can sense the air discharge sound from the atmospheric release opening.

FIG. 4 is a partially sectional side view illustrating a detailed configuration of the air supply pipe 71 and the balloon bursting mechanism 90. A portion inserted inside the balloon 10 of the air supply pipe 71 has a bent shape. In the example in FIG. 4, the air supply pipe 71 extending in a horizontal direction from an aperture 11 of the balloon toward a center of the balloon 10 is bent downward at a bent portion 75.

A hole 77 is formed on a wall surface on a tip side (a side of an opening 76) of the bent portion 75 of the air supply pipe 71. The balloon bursting mechanism 90 is provided below the hole 77 and includes a needle 91 for bursting the balloon 10 and a cylinder 92 which houses (guides) the needle 91 so as to be reciprocable (movable upward and downward). A tip of the cylinder 92 is disposed in proximity of the hole 77. The hole 77 of the air supply pipe 71 functions as a receiving portion which receives the needle 91 of the balloon bursting mechanism 90. The needle 91 of the balloon bursting mechanism 90 is moved upward and downward by an actuator 93 (a solenoid). As illustrated in FIG. 5, when bursting the balloon 10, the needle 91 moves in a direction (an upward direction) in which the needle 91 protrudes from the tip of the cylinder 92, and a tip of the needle 91 operates so as to pierce a wall (a peripheral surface) of the balloon 10 and enter the hole 77 (the receiving portion).

As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, by disposing the tip of the cylinder 92 in proximity of the receiving portion, an operator or the player P can be prevented from inadvertently touching the needle 91 protruding from the tip of the cylinder 92. In addition, by providing the receiving portion on a tip side of the air supply pipe 71, since the needle 91 can be stuck into the wall of the balloon 10 at a position reasonably separated from the aperture 11 of the balloon 10, the balloon 10 can be reliably punctured. Furthermore, by bending the air supply pipe 71 (the portion inserted into the aperture 11) and providing the receiving portion on a wall surface on a tip side of the bent portion 75, a distance between the wall surface of the air supply pipe 71 (the wall surface in a periphery of the receiving portion) and the wall of the balloon 10 (the wall at a position opposing the receiving portion) can be reduced and the wall of the balloon 10 can be made to conform to the wall surface of the air supply pipe 71. Accordingly, since the wall of the balloon 10 can be prevented from deflecting when the needle 91 penetrates the wall of the balloon 10 and the needle 91 can be stuck in a state where the wall of the balloon 10 is stretched along the wall surface of the air supply pipe 71, the balloon 10 can be more reliably punctured. In addition, by bending the air supply pipe 71, the tip of the cylinder 92 can be readily disposed at a position which is more separated from the aperture 11 of the balloon 10 and which is in proximity of the receiving portion of the air supply pipe 71 while preventing the tip of the cylinder 92 from interfering with the balloon 10 in an inflated state.

Furthermore, a protective member 78 formed so as to hide, from a side of the opening 76, the needle 91 having entered the hole 77 is provided inside the air supply pipe 71. Due to the protective member 78, an intruding object (for example, a finger of the operator or the player P) having intruded from the opening 76 can be prevented from coming into contact with the needle 91 having entered the hole 77, and the operator or the player P can be prevented from inserting a finger into the opening 76 and inadvertently touching the needle 91.

In addition, the guide member 80 includes a recessed portion to be fitted into the wall body 2 c. The air supply pipe 71 is provided so as to protrude from a bottom surface of the recessed portion. The guide member 80 supports a portion (a portion including the aperture 11) of the inflated balloon 10 so that the portion is housed in an internal space (an approximately rectangular parallelepiped space) of the recessed portion. Accordingly, the balloon 10 in an inflated state can be stably supported and the manner of inflation of the balloon 10 can be stabilized.

2. Functional Blocks

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of a game system (an effect system) according to one embodiment of the invention. The control device includes a processing unit 100 (a processor) and a storage unit 140 (a memory).

The storage unit 140 stores programs and various data which enable a computer to functions as the respective units of the processing unit 100 and functions as a work area of the processing unit 100, and the functions of the storage unit 140 can be realized by a hard disk, a RAM, and the like.

The processing unit 100 performs processes such as a game process, a process for producing a game effect of bursting the balloon 10, an image generating process, and a sound generation process based on input information (information on coordinates of a touch position of the player P on the screen 3) from a detected signal from the touch module 30 and a captured image of the camera provided in the projector 20, programs, and the like. Functions of the processing unit 100 can be realized by hardware such as various processors (a CPU, DSP, or the like), an ASIC (a gate array or the like), and programs. The processing unit 100 includes a game processing unit 110, a solenoid valve control unit 112, a balloon burst control unit 114, an image generating unit 120, and a sound generating unit 130.

The game processing unit 110 executes a game based on input information. For example, the game processing unit 110 may execute a puzzle-solving game in which a hint regarding a puzzle to be solved in a game story is presented to the player P and the player P solves the puzzle. The game processing unit 110 determines that the game has been cleared when a game result satisfies predetermined conditions (for example, when the player P has solved a puzzle) within a predetermined time limit.

The solenoid valve control unit 112 transmits a control signal to a driver which causes the solenoid valves 73 and 74 to operate, and controls operations (opening and closing) of the solenoid valves 73 and 74. Until a predetermined period of time (which may be the same as or may differ from the predetermined time limit) elapses from the start of the game, the solenoid valve control unit 112 performs control so that the solenoid valve 73 is placed in an open state and the solenoid valve 74 is placed in a closed state, and when the predetermined period of time has elapsed, the solenoid valve control unit 112 performs control so that the solenoid valve 73 is placed in a closed state and the solenoid valve 74 is placed in an open state.

The balloon burst control unit 114 transmits a control signal to a driver of the actuator 93 and controls an operation (upward and downward movement) of the needle 91 of the balloon bursting mechanism 90. When the game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit, the balloon burst control unit 114 performs control for moving the needle 91 from an initial position (refer to FIG. 4) to a position where the needle 91 penetrates the wall of the balloon 10 (refer to FIG. 5) (control for producing a game effect of bursting the balloon 10) after a predetermined period of time has elapsed (after the predetermined time limit has expired). In addition, when the game is cleared within the predetermined time limit, the balloon burst control unit 114 performs control for moving the needle 91 from the initial position to the position where the needle 91 penetrates the wall of the balloon 10 based on an operation by the player P which instructs bursting of the balloon 10 (a touch operation on the screen 3 or an operation on another input unit such as a button).

The image generating unit 120 performs an image drawing process based on results of various processes performed by the processing unit 100 and, accordingly, generates a game image (a game screen) and outputs the game image (the game screen) to the projectors 20 (20 a and 20 b). The sound generating unit 130 performs sound processing based on results of various processes performed by the processing unit 100, generates game sounds including a BGM, sound effects, and voices, and outputs the game sounds to the speaker 50 an amplifier connected to the speaker 50). In addition, the processing unit 100 controls operations of the air supply source 61. Furthermore, the processing unit 100 controls operations of the camera 40 and acquires moving images photographed by the camera 40.

3. Processes

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a flow of processes of the control device (the processing unit 100). Before starting the game, the operator mounts and fixes the balloon 10 in a deflated state to the air supply pipe 71.

First, the solenoid valve control unit 112 performs control for placing the solenoid valve 73 (the first solenoid valve) in an open state and the solenoid valve 74 (the second solenoid valve) in a closed state (step S10). Next, the processing unit 100 performs control for starting an operation of the air supply source 61 (step S12).

Next, the game processing unit 110 executes a game based on input information (step S14), and determines whether or not a predetermined time limit has expired from start of the game (step S16). When the time limit has expired (Y in step S16), the solenoid valve control unit 112 performs control for placing the solenoid valve 73 in a closed state and the solenoid valve 74 in an open state (step S18), and the game processing unit 110 determines whether or not the game has been cleared (step S20). When the game has been cleared (Yin step S20), the game processing unit 110 determines whether or not an input for instructing bursting of the balloon 10 has been made (step S22). When the input has not been made (N in step S22), the processing unit 100 performs control for stopping the operation of the air supply source 61 (step S23).

When the game has not been cleared (N in step S20) but an input for instructing bursting of the balloon 10 has been made (Y in step S22), the processing unit 100 performs control for starting photography of a moving image by the camera 40 (step S24) and performs control for causing the screen 3 to display a countdown of a remaining time until the balloon 10 bursts. Next, the balloon burst control unit 114 produces an effect of moving the needle 91 of the balloon bursting mechanism 90 to burst the balloon 10 (step S26) and, at the same time, the processing unit 100 performs control for stopping the operation of the air supply source 61 (step S28). Next, the processing unit 100 performs control for stopping photography of a moving image by the camera 40 and acquires the photographed moving image (a moving image capturing a state before and after the production of the effect of bursting the balloon 10) (step S30). The moving image acquired in step S30 is uploaded to a server and a two-dimensional barcode for downloading the moving image from the server is displayed on, for example, an operator terminal (a tablet terminal). The player P can acquire the moving image by reading the two-dimensional barcode with a smart phone or the like.

As described above, there can be provided a game system which is capable of producing a nonconventional and new effect in which, when a game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit, the inflated balloon 10 is broken. In addition, according to the above embodiments, by inflating the balloon 10 until a predetermined period of time elapses, and when the predetermined period of time has elapsed, by stopping the supply of air to the balloon 10 through the air supply pipe 71, discharging air from the air supply pipe 72, and generating an air discharge sound, a sensation as if the balloon 10 continues to be inflated can be imparted to a player with the air discharge sound, even after inflation of the balloon 10 is stopped, and an effective effect can be produced while preventing the balloon 10 from bursting at an unintended timing. Furthermore, even when an effect of bursting a balloon is not produced due to the game being cleared within a time limit, the player can experience the effect by performing a predetermined operation.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and thus it can be implemented in many various ways. For example, any term cited with a different term having a broader meaning or the same meaning in the description or the drawings may be replaced by the different term in any place in the description and the drawings.

For example, while a mechanism provided with a needle has been explained as an example of a balloon bursting mechanism in the embodiments described above, a configuration of the balloon bursting mechanism is not limited thereto. For example, as the balloon bursting mechanism, a mechanism provided with a member for scratching a wall (a peripheral surface) of the balloon to puncture the balloon may be used.

In addition, while a configuration in which a balloon is broken using a balloon bursting mechanism has been explained in the embodiments described above, a configuration may be adopted in which the balloon is broken by continuously supplying air to the balloon. In this configuration, control may be performed so that, when the game is not cleared within the predetermined time limit, air supply to the balloon is continued until the balloon punctures, but when the game is cleared within the predetermined time limit, air supply to the balloon is stopped before a time when the balloon is expected to puncture.

Furthermore, while a case where the first solenoid valve is provided in the first air supply pipe and the second solenoid valve is provided in the second air supply pipe has been explained in the embodiments described above, a configuration may be adopted in which a three-way solenoid valve is provided at a branching point of the air supply pipe instead of respectively providing the first air supply pipe and the second air supply pipe with a solenoid valve (a two-way solenoid valve). In other words, as illustrated in FIG. 8, a three-way solenoid valve 79 which makes one flow path among the air supply pipe 71 and the air supply pipe 72 conductive may be provided at a position where the air supply pipe 70 branches into the air supply pipe 71 and the air supply pipe 72. In this case, the control device performs control for making the air supply pipe 71 conductive when inflating the balloon 10 and performs control for making the air supply pipe 72 conductive when stopping inflation of the balloon 10.

Some embodiments of the invention have been described in detail above, but a person skilled in the art will readily appreciate that a large number of modifications are possible in the embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and effects of the invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are assumed to be included in the scope of the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A game system comprising: a balloon; an air supply source; an air supply pipe that connects the balloon with the air supply source; and a control device that executes a game, and when the game is not cleared within a predetermined time limit, performs control for producing a game effect of bursting the balloon having been inflated.
 2. The game system according to claim 1, further comprising a balloon bursting mechanism for bursting the balloon, wherein the air supply pipe branches into two systems including a first air supply pipe connected to the balloon, and a second air supply pipe open to the atmosphere; and wherein the control device performs control for supplying air from the air supply source to the balloon via the first air supply pipe until a predetermined period of time elapses, and when the predetermined period of time has elapsed, performs control for causing air from the air supply source to be discharged from the second air supply pipe, and for operating the balloon bursting mechanism to produce the game effect.
 3. The game system according to claim 2, wherein the control device performs control for operating the balloon bursting mechanism according to an operation by a player when the game is cleared.
 4. The game system according to claim 1, wherein a playing field of a player is enclosed by four wall bodies; and wherein the balloon is disposed on one of the four wall bodies and a screen for displaying a game screen is disposed on at least one of the three remaining wall bodies. 